After a full day of travel which included Josey being invited to TSA's secret room, movies on the plane, dinner in the ATL airport, bonding time stuck in a tube (aka the plane) - we set foot in Peru and made it through customs to meet our Peruvian friends around 1:00am. After a short drive to the YMCA, we called it a night! Our Saturday began with an orientation by Paco - the CEO of the YMCA Peru and International Programs Director. He introduced us to our staff, volunteers, and support for our week: Laddie, Karen, Lucia, Zoe, Ardy, Erika, and Felice! We learned a little more Peruvian culture, some smart travel tips and some expectations for the week. After a breakfast of eggs, toast, coffee, and OJ - we headed out for the Arco Ibis Orphanage. As we arrived at the orphange, 25-30 kids came running out to greet us. We sang spanish songs, danced, turned tons of cartwheels, played futbol (soccer), raced cars (don't worry - they were toy cars!), colored pictures together, played balloon games, did caterpillar relays, and had a ton of just plain old fun. The smiles on the kids' faces when we arrived was priceless - the only thing better was when we told them we'd be back on Sunday! The languages of love, friendship, and laughter are interpreted easily in any language - and it was the reason for our successful day today.
After the orphange we spent the afternoon walking around the parks in Miraflores, had a delicious lunch filled with Ceviche, Causas de Congrejas (Crab Causas), Pulpo (octopus), Inca Kola, Lomo Saltado, Aji Sauce, and so much more - too much to name. After lunch we spent time shopping, taking a double decker bus tour of Miraflores, walking through El Parque de Amor, and saw some ancient ruins of the Incans. After a rest time at the YMCA, we ate dinner of Lomo Saltado con papas fritas y arroz (french friends and rice). After dinner, we joined into a drum circle with the YMCA's proleaderes program. The program is the Peruvian version of Leaders' Club. It is a leadership club that is focused on fellowship and service; teens spend the first three years as proleaderes participants and volunteers within the YMCA. Their fourth year of the program they become leaders (or advisors) for the program. There were over 100 Peruvian teens here for the program. As we joined into their drum circle, we fit right in. We spent the evening at the water park - which is a landscaped park with HUGE fountains. We watched a show of fountains timed to music with lights and lasers, walked through a 100 foot water tunnel tota
lly dry, ran through a fountain that got us totally soaked, then headed back to the Y for devotion. We had a fantastic first day - totally blown away by the love shown to us by both our YMCA hosts as well as the kids at the orphange. You would've thought that we'd all known each other for years. Looking forward to the second day at the orphange, the downtown city tour, and salsa dance lessons... Stay tuned, check out the pictures, and check back in for another update!
After the orphange we spent the afternoon walking around the parks in Miraflores, had a delicious lunch filled with Ceviche, Causas de Congrejas (Crab Causas), Pulpo (octopus), Inca Kola, Lomo Saltado, Aji Sauce, and so much more - too much to name. After lunch we spent time shopping, taking a double decker bus tour of Miraflores, walking through El Parque de Amor, and saw some ancient ruins of the Incans. After a rest time at the YMCA, we ate dinner of Lomo Saltado con papas fritas y arroz (french friends and rice). After dinner, we joined into a drum circle with the YMCA's proleaderes program. The program is the Peruvian version of Leaders' Club. It is a leadership club that is focused on fellowship and service; teens spend the first three years as proleaderes participants and volunteers within the YMCA. Their fourth year of the program they become leaders (or advisors) for the program. There were over 100 Peruvian teens here for the program. As we joined into their drum circle, we fit right in. We spent the evening at the water park - which is a landscaped park with HUGE fountains. We watched a show of fountains timed to music with lights and lasers, walked through a 100 foot water tunnel tota
lly dry, ran through a fountain that got us totally soaked, then headed back to the Y for devotion. We had a fantastic first day - totally blown away by the love shown to us by both our YMCA hosts as well as the kids at the orphange. You would've thought that we'd all known each other for years. Looking forward to the second day at the orphange, the downtown city tour, and salsa dance lessons... Stay tuned, check out the pictures, and check back in for another update!
No comments:
Post a Comment